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(Nqmoael.) 2 sheet-sneet 1. J..V. D. ELDREDGE. OAR GOUPLVING. No. 880,874. Patented Apr. 10, 1888.

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(No Model.) 2 sheets-sheet 2.

J. V. D. ELDRBDGE.

GAR GOUPLING.

Patented Apr. 10, 1888..

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

IOHN v. D. ELDEEDGE, OE DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIeNoE OE ONE-HALE rro LOUIS DU BOIS AND HENRY wUNScH, BOTII OE SAME PLACE.

CAR-CUPLING.

- SPECIFICATION 'forming pari; of Letters Patent No. 380,874, dated April 10, 12388.

Application filed February 28, 1887. Serial No. 229,188. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN V. D. ELDEEDGE, of Detroit, county of Wayne, State of Michigan, have invented anew and useful Improvement in Car-Couplers; and I declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use it, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,which form apart of thisspeeiiication.

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in car-couplers.

The obj ect of the invention is to provide an automatic car-coupler which shall be simple and economical in construction and efficient in its operation; and it consists of the combinations of devices and appliances hereinafter specified, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

I carry out my invention as follows:

In the drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of aportion of the draw-bars, illustrating my inventiomwith parts broken away. Fig. 2 is a front view of a draw-bar, illustrating features of my improved device. Fig. 8 is a plan view of two adjacent draw-bars, showing parts broken away. `Fig. 4 is a perspective View. Fig. 5 is an inverted plan View of the bottom of a car with my improved coupler attached. Fig. 6 is a side elevation of a draw-bar with parts broken away to illustrate the interior construction thereof.

A represents a car; B, a draw-bar.

In the open mouthof the draw-bar is located an upwardly-extended post, B, the front and rear faces of said post each constructed upon an angle, as shown more particularly in Figs. 1 and 6, the top of the post thus approaching a point, as indicated in said figures, the construction being such that the link C, engaged in the adjacent draw-bar striking upon the front face of said post as the cars come together, will ride easily over the front face of said post and fall to the rear thereof, the post being thus embraced in the orifice of the link. This post may be made integrally with the draw-bar, so as to present a very strong bearing to receive the strain when the cars are coupled.

The base of the post, as will bc seen, has a broad engagement with the draw-bar, so that all liability of breakage is effectually overcome.

To retain the link upon the post until it is desired to uncouple the cars, I provide the draw-head-with a rectangular pin, D, pivoted to the upper portion of the draw-bar, preferably toward the angle of the pin.

The draw-bar may be provided with projecting bearings b,to receive the pivot ci. The lower arm of the pin projects through the oriiice b in the top of the draw-bar and downward to the rear of the front face of the post B', the rear face of said post being preferably cut away, as shown at b2, to form an engaging shoulder for the end of the pinl when it is in its normal position.

It will be readily seen that when the link has been engaged upon the post the link will be prevented from disengagement from the post by the location of said pin. The draft of the link will bring it into engagement with the rear of the pin, as shown by the position of the link, Fig. l, in dotted lines at c.

Any strain that may come upon the pin itself is communicated at once to the post, so that the post shall bear the strain of the draft. There can thus be no possibility oi any accidental disengagement of the link from said post. When it is desired to uncouple the car, the outer arm, which lies horizontally in the normal position of the pin, is raised, the slack on the link permitting it to fall to the base of the rear face of the post, and the lower portion of the pin is thereby tilted rearward, as shown in dotted lines at d', leaving a freepassage between it and the post for the escape of the link, which will readily ride over the angular rear face of the post.

The tilting of the pin may be accomplished by arms E E', extended to either side of the car, as shown in Fig. 4, and suitably engaged with the rear arm of the pin. An operating rod or cable may also be extended .to the top ofthe car, as shown at E?, and engaged with the rear end of said pin, so that the uncoupling may be effected from either side or the top of the car. i

In order to hold the link in a horizontal po- IOO sition, so as to readily enter the mouth of the opposing draw-bar in the operation of coupling, Iprefer to provide the mouth ofthe drawbar with a recess, b3, into which the link may be engaged and held in a horizontal position, this engagement in said orifice being effected before the cars closely approach each other. As before stated, a link so engaged in one drawbar will readily ride over the post of the corresponding draw-bar, tilting the lower end of the pin backward to permit its engagement over the post, this engagement thus being accomplished automatically. This oriflce b3, I prefer to so locate in the mouth of the draw-bar that the lilik Will be held horizontally near the middle of the draw-bar. To provide for engagement of one draw-bar with another of a lower level, I prefer t0 construct the lower inner face of the mouth of the drawbar upon an angle, as shown at b", so that a straight link may have a downward incline from the rear of the post forward, as shown in dotted lines, Fig. l, at c.

Iwould have it understood that I do not limit myself to any particular mechanism for operating the rectangular pin from either side or the top of the car, as this may be done in any desired manner without departing from the principle of my invention.

As shown in Fig. 5, the draw-bar is engaged with a yoke, F, in its application to the car-body, and I propose to connect the two yokes on opposite ends ofthe car bya connecting-rod,G, said rod being provided at each end with suitable springs, H, having a bearing against its adjacent yoke and the adjacent sill a. By connecting the two yokes thus with the rod G, provided with its springs H, it will be seen that an equalization will be effected. The force occasioning the compression of the spring at the one end will at the same time cause its contraction at the opposite end, and vice versa.

It will be seen that When the cars are coupled together one after another in making up the train the strain required to run the cars will be thus communicated through the respective draw-barsnof each car to the draw-bars of the adjacent car, and these drawbars,being themselves connected by the rod G with their intervening yokes and draw-bars, thus make a continuous connection from one end of the train to the other, the draft coming upon these parts. Moreover, in starting each individual car, the draft is in reality applied through the rod G to the rear of the car and not to the one or more separate sills at the front of the car. In this manner the strain may be communicated to all the sills except those at the ends, as I also contemplate locating at each side the connectingrod G, longitudinal sills G G2, suitably engaged with the cross-sills a a', &c., so that the strain is not only communicated to all the cross-sills except those at the ends, but is communicated also longitudinally to the sills G G2. The connecting-rod G has ali mited longitudinal movementthrough the adjacentsills. So, also, in backing a train the same principles apply in reverse order, as the strain is communicated to the entire car.

It will be seen that as soon as a car has been started the strain is communicated to the connecting-rod G of the following car, and so on in order, so that in the starting of a train the strain comes upon the sills of the different cars one at a time in successive order, and when all have been started the strain comes upon the eonnectingrods G with their intervening yokes and draw-bars, as already described, thereby preventing damage to the cars, as is frequently occasioned by the ordinary construction. After the cars are started there is no longer any pull upon the body of the car. The springs H serve the ordinary purposes of bumper-springs, besides performing their function with the connecting -rod G. Thereby the springs serve a double purpose,

as they may be pulled against at one end and backed against at the other. The yokes are so constructed and engaged with the drawbars as to leave a space, as shown at h, between the yoke and the draw-bar for the play ofthe draw-bar upon the connecting-rod G. v

'Ihe yoke is engaged upon the draw-bar and the connecting-bar with the yokes, respectively, in such a manner that the draft will always be from the center. The rod G is centrally engaged with the yoke,and the yoke engaged with the draw-bar centrally upon the same horizontal line. The yoke consists of a U-shaped metallic strap perforated intermediate of its ends to receive the rod G. Its outer extremities are engaged with the drawhead midway its upper and lower surfaces. It will be observed that the bar B is a combined bumper and draw-bar.

To adapt my improved coupler for the employment of an ordinary coupling-pin whenever it-might be necessary or desirable,instead of providing the post B with a simple shoulder at b2, as before described, I may construct the post and the portion of the draw-bar upon which it is located with a vertical orifice, as shown in Figs. l and 6 at b5. Suchan orilice will permit the engagement of the lower end IOO IIO

of the rectangular pin in the rear of the front face of the post, so as to prevent the escape of the link and to communicate the strain to the post, while at the same time the ordinary coupling-pin may be inserted in said orifice whenever it shall be found convenient, the rectangular pin being readily removable by the disengagement of its pivot d.

It will be obvious that with the use of an ordinary coupling-pin, and also in the use of my rectangular pin, couplings may be effected with any ordinary draw-bar and link,it not being absolutely necessary that the adjacent car should be provided with the same coupling mechanism.

The rearwardly-extended arm of the rectangular pin being of greater length than the lower arm thereof, it will naturally possess greater weight,so as to always return the lower end to its normal position in engagementwith the post whenever the pin is free to move; or the said rearwardlyextended arm may be weighted otherwise to accomplish this purpose.

1. In a car-coupling, the combination of the draw-bar B, having an opening, b, in its top, a recess, b3, in its rear wall, and a post, B', located in its mouth and provided with front and rear inclined faces, and with a recess, at its rear upper end, an angular pin, D, pivoted in the opening b', and a link, C, substantially as shown and described.

2. The combination, with a car-body and draw-bars located at its opposite ends, of the cross-sills a a', longitudinal sills G G2, the yokes F,secured to the draw-bars,and the rod G,connecting said yokes and provided with a spring,H, at each end, substantially as shown and described.

3. The combination, with a draw-bar, of a post constructed with angular front and rear faces projecting upward in the open mouth of the draw-bar to permit a link engaging about said post, a pin to engage said post in the rear of its front face, said post cutaway to form a shoulder on its upper rear face to receive and engage the lower end of said pin above the base of the mouth of the draw-bar, the construction being such that the link may engage in the rear of the post and pin and below the` upper extremity of said post, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with a drawbar constructed with an orifice, b3, in the rear of its open mouth adapted to hold thelink in ahorizontal position independently of the pin, of a post projecting upward in the open mouth of the draw-bar, a pin to engage the post in the rear of its front face, said post cut away to form a shoulder in its upper rear face to re-. ceive and engage the lower end of the pin above the base of the mouth of the draw-head, the construction being such that the link may engage in the rear of the post and pin and communicate the strain of the draft to the draw-bar in a longitudinal direction, the engagement of the pin with the post being substantially at the vertical center of the mouth of the draw-bar, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with a draw-bar, of a post projecting upward in the open mouth of the vertical center of the draw-head, and upon a downward incline from the rear ofthe post, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with a carbody and a combined bumper and draw-bars located at its 'opposite ends, and each provided with a yoke engaged therewith on the central line of jo draft, of sills a a', longitudinal sills G G2, a rod, G, connecting said combined bumpers and draw-bars on the central line of draft, said rod provided with springs H at its extremities, each having a bearing against the adjacent cross-sills, and serving as a combined bumper and draft-spring, substantially as described.

7. The combination, with a car-body provided with cross`sills a a and longitudinal sills G G2, of a combined bumper and drawbars located at opposite ends of the car, each provided with a yoke engaged therewith on the central line of draft, a rod, G, connecting said yokes on the said central line of draft through said combined bumper and draw-bars, springs H at the extremities of said rod, each having a bearing against the adjacent crosssill andthe adjacent yoke,said springs serving as combined bumper and draftsprings, and said rod having a movable engagement with the yokes and crossesills, substantially as described.

In testimonywhereof I sign this .specifica tion in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN V. D. ELDREDGE. 

